Wednesday, July 04, 2007

The Declaration of Scooterpendence

... We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

It's an appropriate day to stand back and assess the state of American democracy on this, the 231st anniversary of the declaration and focus on the phrase "whenever any form of government becomes destructive ... it is the Right of the People at alter or abolish it..."

In the last 48 hours, a president elected with a mandate ranging from questionable to non-existent has declared he is both judge and jury -- overruling a properly-seated jury and declaring that a sentence handed down to one of his cronies (one who took part in a conspiracy to cover-up the outing of a CIA agent) was "excessive."

This is, of course, is the same government that launched a destructive war under false pretenses, has spied against its own citizens without the even bothering with the legal process and has smeared anyone who dissents with as a "traitor."

Then off course there is the Vice President who decides he is his own fourth branch of government, not bound by the rules that apply to either the executive or legislative branches he ostensibly claims to be part of.

Contrast this to a man who shot, but did not injure a friend with a BB gun, served his country in Iraq and was denied a pardon that would allow him to become a police officer.

That tough man is Myth Romney, who defends Libby as the victim of unjust prosecution.

Then there's Fred Thompson, who served as a mole to the Nixon administration during the Senate Watergate hearings -- leaking information to the White House all the while insisting Nixon was the victim of a spiteful media.

And what is Thompson today (other than another flawed GOP presidential candidate)? Why, a leader of the Scooter Libby Defense Fund.

We are indeed two Americas, as John Edwards often points out. But the gap is far more than economic. There is a justice gap -- whether in the courtroom or in the prisons. The privileged, like Libby and Cheney -- do not suffer the consequences of their actions.

We have strayed too far afield from the principles embodied in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. It is time to alter this form of government and remove the criminals who use the levers of powers to reward their friends and harass their enemies.

Impeachment probably would take too long in the dying embers of this administration. But the need to throw out the crooks and liars in 2008 should be the No. 1 priority in the months the remain in the rule of King George IV.